Gearing up for the take-off

I sit here at the computer as my munchkins are napping, laundry is going, and tons of things need to be done around the house. Just for a moment of reflection I want to post that we have two weeks to get everything done, and I do not feel a bit overwhelmed (yet). My list is made and things are being checked off. I am able to keep up on friends' adoptions as ours progresses along with theirs. I continue to pray for those waiting for SDA appts and court dates, and those waiting for fingerprints to clear with USCIS. I realize that in just a couple short weeks, I will not have the luxury of checking up on everyone at random. I will be in a foreign land, learning new customs, going back and forth to see my little boy, and missing my other children like crazy.

We don't even know if we'll have constant access to internet like here. We are planning to stay with a sweet lady through our church, but I have not heard from her in over a month. If we don't hear back soon, we will have to make other arrangements for an apartment and "hope" they have internet. We are planning to Skype with our families, so this will be important. We just signed up for "A Story Before Bedtime" so we can record ourselves reading stories to the girls while we're away.

We really feel like all the details are in order. Fischer goes to Nick's house on May 15. The older girls go to Gina's on May 16 in the late morning, and we will get to visit for an hour or so before we leave for the airport. We depart LAX at 9:05pm that day, hopefully sleep on the plane for 8-10 hours, land in Munich with a 2 hour layover to stretch our legs and let Annie get her wiggles out, then jump back on for a quick flight into the capitol of Micah's country. We won't arrive there until 10:35pm, where our driver will take us to our apartment wherever it may be :) We will then have a day of rest, and our SDA appt is on May 19th at 11am.

I cannot wait for that day, where we can learn more about Micah's background and see his file, share our story, and wait for our official referral to meet him. I pray for a same-day referral or an early referral the following day so we can meet him before the weekend, but realistically, we will not get to meet him until Monday, May 23rd, the day before Barry's birthday. And that is okay! That will give us the weekend to tour his city and experience the culture with Annie before we jump into the daily routines we will share for 5-8 weeks. We are very excited to finally be leaving to get Micah. It was just 6 short months ago we committed to adopt him. And here we are getting ready to leave in 14 days. It seems surreal. It felt like it took forever to get here, but it went by so fast in reality. Even our social worker told me that our travel date came fast.

Once again we wait, but this time without worry or stress. We are at peace while we organize everything and eagerly await our take-off! We ask for prayers from our family and friends, specifically that we will have a safe flight(s), that the arrival and SDA process goes smoothly, that we get a quick court date, and that our judge approves the adoption. Pray for our children that they will all be safe and healthy, that they do not get too homesick, and that they are reassured we are coming back as quickly as possible. Pray for Kristin & Bryan and Robert & Gina that they will be prepared and equipped for whatever comes their way with our kids :) That they can be strong and handle anything (especially Robert & Gina with our girls). SAFETY, LOVE, and HEALTH for everyone involved. Thank you!